Nation's Marching Band
by Karaoke-Lover
Summary: Modern Kataang with bending! Aang is a sophmore and the newest member of the Nations Marching band. Katara is Colorguard Captian in the Marching Band. Will the new sophmore be able to survive the complications that is NHS"s pride? KatAang, eventually Tokka.
1. Chapter 1

**I know what you're thinking. Where have I been? I apologize, I have been working really hard on the ideas for my Modern Kataang, and so I really hope that you all like it. I am also working on the next few chapters of Healing Hearts. I got caught up in a writer's block unfortunately. If you have any ideas, please feel free to comment on that story if you have any ideas, or you can PM me and I will probably reply within 24 hours tops. I'll give you a shout-out for your help. Also, if you are a follower on Heartbreak, it is going through some major editing and should be up hopefully by next week or possibly sooner. I also have a website and I will begin posting updates on my stories and other random stuff. My website is .**

**Some things that you may need to know about this story: It is Kataang (obviously) and it revolves around Marching Band, Color Guard (some of you may know it as tall flags), and Winter Guard (Color Guard in the winter competing against other schools Color Guards.)**

**Band terms that will be used often (in capital letters, they are yelled.)**

**BAND TEN HUT: - (also known as Band Attention) all of marching band freezes and stands at attention while looking straight ahead or at whoever is talking.**

**BAND DISMISSED: when marching band is dismissed, everyone replies NHS PRIDE! This means Nation High School Pride.**

**Band rest: everyone relaxes and no longer has to stand at attention**

**MARK TIME HUT: Band marches in place, but only their heels leave the ground**

**BAND MARCH: Band marches in time with the music.**

***if you are confused with any of these terms, leave me a PM and let me know so I can clarify***

**_My longest chapter in Fanfiction!_**

**Okay, so onto the good stuff.**

**_*Disclaimer: if I owned ATLA, I would've made sure that the movie was better.*_**

**Chapter One: the Boy in the Cabinet**

"Ugh," gasped the boy, crashing into a solid object and falling onto the main hallway of Nations High school. He heard the person he bumped into grunt in surprise.

"Oh, sorry man, I didn't see you there." The teenager Aang ran into said. He was tall and tanned. With large blue eyes that were in shocking contrast with his darkly tanned skin. He wore a dark blue button down that was opened with a gray tank top under. He rocked skinny dark blue jeans and black Vans. He had long hair for a person his age, with his hair pulled back in a ponytail. He leaned down and held his arm out to the younger boy who had fallen. Aang gratefully grabbed his green spiral notebook and the older boy's elbow and was hoisted to his feet. "Whoa, cool tattoo." The boy said, eyeing the sky blue tattoo of an arrow that was barely showing through his coarse black hair sprawled across his forehead. He grabbed his black baseball cap off of the ground sporting his favorite baseball team, the Dragons where it had fallen on the floor and fixed it to hide his arrow.

"Oh, uh, thanks." Aang murmured back, releasing the boy's elbow, only to grab it again when the boy introduced himself.

"I'm Sokka, you must be new here." The guy decked in blue said.

"Aang, and yes, today is my first day. Sorry about running into you." He said, shaking Sokka's forearm in a greeting.

Sokka looked the guy over. He was wearing normal jeans and a pair of black Nikes. A chain stretched from the back of his jeans to the side. He also wore a gray t-shirt under an opened plaid orange button down and a leather street jacket over it. He looked normal enough. The only thing that threw him slightly off guard was a wooden cross that was strung with wood beads down to level just past his chest.

Sokka smiled at Aang, "Hey, it's no problem, it happeneds." then he noticed a paper on the ground that he had been looking over before he ran into him. He noticed the classed on the back. "Here, you might need this. Are you a sophomore?" Aang nodded to Sokka. "I think that you have some classes with my little sister then. We don't get very many new kids around these parts, so she will be sure to help you out. And if she can't, look me up. I'm not that hard to find." Sokka said as a beautiful, fair-skinned and platinum haired girl walked up behind Sokka and slipped her pale hand into his darker one. She smiled at Aang with shining white teeth and reflective silver eyes. The way she moved was graceful, almost spirit-like. But somehow, shockingly, Aang was not attracted in that way. Instead he politely held out his hand for her to lay hers in and bowed down to kiss her hand.

"I'm Yue." She said as his lips gently meet the back of her hand. It was polite when you saw no interest in a female that you kiss her hand. When you would like to know them a lot more, you kiss both of their cheeks. Sokka smiled, he had a good feeling about this guy, and so far he showed no interest in his girlfriend.

"Aang." He replied straightening up. He turned back to scrutinizing his schedule. "Um, Sokka? Can you point me to the band room?"

"Oh, yeah. It is straight out this door, and the brown bungalows by the football field. Room 117, they should be kids setting their instruments there, so you really can't miss it."

Aang smiled back at him. "Thank you so much. It was nice to meet you." Aang said, shaking Sokka's forearm once again.

"See you around, Aang." Sokka said. "Look us up if you need help."

"Will do." Aang replied, a slight smile on his lips. He spun on his heel and walked through the sea of teenagers talking, laughing, and gossiping. He briefly wondered if these people had a life outside of school, but he shook it off. It was none of his business.

Sokka turned to Yue. "You know what? I kind of like that kid."

Aang pushed opened the glass door that lead outside to the courtyard. Steady raindrops fell from the dark clouds and Aang groaned. He could tell that the rainfall would soon turn into a storm by how still it was yesterday. He hated rainstorms. He trudged up the small hill to the bungalows where he saw many students walking in and out of a room carrying their brass and silver instruments. When he strode to the door, a student carrying a large silver drum set ran into Aang.

Aang gasped in surprise and slight pain as he was thrown into someone else. "Whoa." He gasped when a pair of large hands grabbed his shoulders and he was suddenly soaring out the door, landing in the mud that formed outside. Those same large hands that had grabbed him yanked him up to his knees and turned him to face his opponent. The boy was buff, with black hair and large brown eyes. His large, tanned fist punched him square in the face and Aang felt his nose begin to bleed, so he did the only thing that came to mind. He shifted into a crouched position, and he swung his leg around, twisting out of the boy's grip. The heel of Aang's foot connected with the boy's jaw, and the boy yelped in pain, spitting out blood and throwing more punches at Aang who was attempting to nurse his broken nose. Aang jumped up from his position on the ground and ducked the next hit, backing up until four other hands grabbed him from behind.

"This will teach you to run into me without apologizing." The one who had punched Aang in the face growled between his teeth. He couldn't take on three! He struggled against the other two who held him, but he had no luck in moving and was repeatedly punched until his vision blurred. He coughed as thick, red blood ran down his paled lips and onto his shirt. Blood from his blackened eyes fell into the mud as the stronger rain washed at his wounds. He blacked out.

He wasn't sure how long had passed. A minute? An hour? A year? All he knew is that he was in a closed space and it couldn't be opened from the inside. He kicked at the door weakly, but that was all he could do before blacking out again.

He knew that he must be in a closet or something, he just didn't know where, or how to get out. This head was at a weird angle so it wouldn't hit the shelf above him. He then heard voices. Voices that may be able to get him out. He summoned all of his energy and kicked the door. He felt pain shoot up his leg and he recoiled against the back of the closet, focusing on the voices behind his cell.

"Katara, I think something fell in that cabinet, would you mind taking a look for me please?" a matured woman's voice asked.

"Yes, Miss Lee." The girl who Aang assumed was Katara replied. She had a youthful voice, soft and loving. He heard her behind the cabinet.

_Finally, this is it. I'm getting out of here._ He thought. Then a bright light was shown in his face. Large, blue eyes fell on the injured boy that was curled in the corner. His cloths were ripped and stained with mud and blood. He had a black eye, a broken nose, and a cut that ran from his temple up into his thick hair.

Aang gapped. He must have died. Why else would an angel be coming to his rescue? The angel knelt down." Just hold on, okay? I'll get you out of here." The Angel closed the cupboard and Aang heard her voice say, "It was just some books that fell."

Aang didn't know why, but he trusted that the Angel would come back for him.

When the Final bell rang for school dismissal, and everyone was out of the classroom, Katara ran to the cabinet.

"Katara, what are you-?" Mrs. Lee began to ask when Katara opened the door and showed her the boy. "Oh, no. Not another one."

Katara leaned down and took the boy's arm and slinging it around her neck. He pulled him out sideways and out of the closet, his feet dragged out after him. He was held closely to her as she placed his head in her lap.

Aang opened his mouth to tell her thank you, but all that came out was a strange crackling noise.

"Shhh." The mocha-skinned girl whispered. "I got you, you'll be okay." She whispered to him, as she pulled off his backpack that was dangling on his shoulder, and reached back into the cabinet to grab his hat and throw it into the bag.

"I'll close the door." Mrs. Lee said heels clicking against the concrete flooring. After a few moments, there was a loud click of a metal door being closed.

Katara raised her tanned hands, water forming around them and. She gently placed it on the cut on his temple and when the blood washed off, moved it to his black eye, bloody nose, and slowly down to his busted lip.

The fragile boy peered up at her, and she almost gasped. His eyes were stunning despite the large bruise. They seemed warm and welcoming. "T-thank you." He choked out.

She just smiled sadly.

"You're a Waterbender, a-aren't you?" he asked, mentally slapping himself for speaking the obvious.

"Unfortunately, not a very experienced one." She whispered as she washed the rest of the cuts on him. He lay still for a few moments before attempting to sit up and he shifted his right leg.

"Agh!" he cried out, falling back as Katara caught him by the shoulders and gently propped him up against a desk. His face had paled, and his brilliant eyes closed once again.

"Are you okay?" she asked, her large blue eyes widening about twice the size.

Aang caught his breath and ran his fingers through his hair. And once again Katara gasped. A blue tattoo caught her eyes. Aang heard her gasp and quickly pulled his hair back over it, the tattoo once again hidden from sight. "Yeah… but, I don't think I can get up." he gasped, his voice weak. Katara looked thoughtful for a moment.

"Maybe it is broken?" she wondered aloud. "Which leg is it?"

"Left." Aang murmured, eyes snapping open when Katara placed her hands on his leg. She locked her eyes with his as her hands trailed down his leg, waiting until she saw any kind of pain. She pressed down gently on places on his leg until she gently pushed on his calf, and he flinched.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." Katara whispered to him soothingly. Her hands gently pushed again on his calf a few more times.

"Can you pop it back in? Please?" he begged as her eyes widened with each word.

"I can… but are you sure that you want me to? I'm sure that we can get you to a hospital so it is not as painful-"

"Please?" the boy begged to her. The pain was really starting to get to him now, he was starting to feel sick and both Mrs. Lee and Katara could tell. He peered up at her, silently begging her to take away the pain.

"Okay." She whispered, placing her hands on locked positions on his knee and leg. "One the count of three. One." She said softly, locking her hands on Aang's leg. "two." Aang's eyes squeezed shut, readying himself for the pain. "Three." Her hands tightened and snapped it back into place within two seconds.

An unbelievable amount of pain shot through him and he screamed, but he forced himself to stay still. The pain was throbbing in his swollen leg and he lay still until the pain subsided enough to talk back clearly. "Thank You." He whispered, opening his eyes when he knew the pain wouldn't cloud his vision. "Thank you so much." His eyes locked with hers again. Now was his chance to look at her and what he saw surprised him. She wore a deep blue tank top under a fitted leather jacket. Dark black skinny jeans disappeared behind black boots that had a wedge heel and a zipper in the back. She had five black and silver bracelets on her left arm while there were two on her right. Half of her hair was piled onto the back her head and held in place with a hair clip. The rest of her coffee-colored hair was wavy and fell down to her waist, and he sported Chrystal dangling earrings. And, just like him, a silver chain ran from her hip to the back of her jeans. She was perfect in every way, and his mouth had suddenly gone very dry in the realization that he was such a mess and she looked like an angel.

"Are you okay?" she asked him.

_Is she saying something? Pull yourself together Aang! "_Um… yes, I think I will be thank you."

She smiled a soft smile that made Aang's heart flutter in his chest. "You're very brave, Jet must have been the one to throw you in here." She saw his confused expression, and realization dawned on her face. "Wait a second… aren't you the new student that's going to be the new addition to the Marching Band?" she asked.

Aang was shocked that she knew that. "Yeah, I am. How did you know that?" his silver eyes widened in surprise.

Her small smile turned into a grin, showing dazzling white teeth. "Captains know all." She replied with a small laugh. "You'll understand soon. Do you need help getting up?" she asked softly, eyes now of concern for the handsome boy in front of her.

He shifted his position carefully and grabbed onto the wooden desk, hoisting himself up. He swayed for a moment on the spot before the dark-haired girl grabbed her binder and his backpack, throwing it over her shoulder and placing a steadying arm around his waist.

"Thank you, Mrs. Lee." Katara murmured as she opened the door.

"Take care, Aang." Mrs. Lee replied.

"Well." She said slowly, walking carefully down the steps that separated the bungalows to the 2 story stone buildings. "School is out now."

"Oh-no." he groaned, bringing his hand up to his head.

"Hey." She said to him, turning around and placing her hands steadying against his shoulders, looking him straight into his silver eyes. "It's not your fault that Jet threw you into the cabinet and dislocated your leg. I can explain to the office and the Band Instructor about what happened." She said seriously.

He smiled slightly at her, and her heart fluttered in her chest. How can a boy who she just barley met do this to her? She had no clue. She needed to distract herself before he caught her forming blush.

"Thank you." He whispered to her softly. She caught back her senses as she thought of something to say that would stop her from thinking too much about the soft octaves of his voice or the way his lips moved in such a way that made her shiver. Oh Katara, what are you going to do with yourself?

"So I can assume that it was you who gave Jet the black eye then, huh?" she asked, ripping her eyes away from his hypnotic lips.

"Really?" He asked, as a spark lightened his unusual eyes. "Good. I hoped it would." He replied, a playful smile tugging at his lips, it dropped suddenly, however, when he caught sight of himself in the window of an empty classroom. "Oh Spirits, that can't be good." Katara stopped her slow stride as he froze in his tracks.

"What's wrong?" she asked as he carefully felt his nose with the tips of his fingers and then winced. She noticed that his nose was slightly off angle. In the dull light of the southern California afternoon overcast, the purple-blue bruise was fairly prominent in contrast with his pale skin. She gasped softly, unsure of how she had missed his broken nose while she was cleaning the blood off of him. She tightened her grip around his waist as he removed his arm from around her shoulders, balancing quite well on his one good leg. He flinched as he placed the heel of his palms against the bridge of his nose and jerked his head to the side. He groaned as pain shot through his body like electricity through a wire, leaving a dull pain in his veins. His nose, which was getting used to its new position on his face, began to bleed once again. Before Katara could react, he stepped out of her grip to where she could only place a steadying hand on his shoulder as he shed his jacket, flannel, and t-shirt., then quickly replaced his flannel and jacket on his shoulders and pressed the t-shirt to his nose. He put the pressure on it, willing the blood to stop flowing. He sighed in relief as Katara replaced her arm around his waist and steered him to the stone wall of the building, propping him up so he could lean against its wall. She then took a seat next to him, patiently waiting for the bleeding to stop. He sighed once again when the bleeding finally stopped and he mopped up the excess blood.

"I'm so sorry that this had to happen to you." Katara whispered to him.

He was silently looking down at the cement sidewalk in front of him. "Thank you for your concern. But really, it's okay. I've unfortunately been through worse. It's not the first time that I've had a broken nose… but it is the first time that I have had so many people gain up on me so fast." The laughed quietly to himself and when she peered up at him quietly he said, "I guess that doesn't make you want to be around me, huh?" he asked, still chuckling slightly.

Katara laughed as well, a very beautiful laugh that made Aang's smile widen a little. "That's okay." She laughed, waving it away. "Growing up here, you kind of get used to the fist fights."

"Yeah. I kind of figured that after being stuffed in a closet." He replied, grinning a goofy smile. His grin fell into a troubled look though, after a few seconds.

"What's wrong?" she asked him, slightly alarmed at his fast change of expression.

He was staring intently at something across the courtyard in the middle of the large, two story buildings. He tore his eyes away from the not-so-particular spot and locked eyes with Katara's. "Oh, I was just wondering where my manners are. I realize that we haven't been properly introduced. I'm Aang, Aang Nomad." He said, a shy crooked smile appeared at his lips.

"Katara." She smiled back at him. "Katara Hail."

"Well, Ms. Hail, It is a pleasure to meet you." He said, thanking her hand in his, much to her dismay. That was, until he froze and seemed to think better of kissing her hand and instead leaned forward to slowly kiss both of her cheeks. When his lips toughed her skin, it felt like an electric shock. She had to hold back the gasp that threatened to bush its way between her lips. She couldn't think, like her mind was wiped clean. All she knew was that she wanted to get to know this Aang better. A lot better. He pulled away after the second kiss and looked her right in the eyes. "Thank you." He repeated sincerely, silver eyes burning intense.

"I-it was no problem." Katara stuttered, completely under the spell his eyes cast over her. She couldn't move from his stare.

His eyes fell from hers, the slightest bit of color forming lightly across this face, highlighting the jaw line of his- what Katara realized- lightly tanned skin. He wasn't as pale as he looked in the room. Not at all. The lack of eye contact broke the spell that had cast over her.

He ran his hand through the hair on the nape of his neck. "Well, I guess I'd better go, I really don't want to keep you at school." He finally sighed, using the wall to balance as he got up on his good leg that was supporting his weight. Katara was about to agree, getting up herself to brush excess dirt off of her jeans, but something about leaving this boy felt so wrong. She really wanted to get to know him. "Hey, wait." She said, standing straight up. The boy froze with his hand halfway extended to give her a proper goodbye, but then it fell, swinging back to his side. "My brother, his girlfriend, and one of our friends are all going to crash the mall today. Do you want to come with us?" she asked, a glint of hope shining in her eyes.

The boy was still for a moment, shocked that she would even think to ask him. "Well, I really don't think that your friends and brother will enjoy the intrusion…" he began shortly.

"Intrusion?" Katara snorted. "Not at all! C'mon, it will be fun. I can tell you about Nation's marching band." She tried to persuade.

"Well…" he started again. "Okay then." He said slowly. "I guess it couldn't hurt to get to know this place as soon as possible." But then his face fell as he took in his appearance. "But, would it be okay if I stopped by my house to get a change of clothes?"

She scanned his disheveled appearance from his muddy vans to his now ripped and muddied jeans. Another slight blush crept across her cheeks when she saw that Aang wasn't wearing his shirt under his flannel and she could see parts of a well-sculpted chest. "That may be a good idea." She concluded.

Aang laughed. "Okay."

She grinned back at him. "Okay then, let's go."

Aang picked up his black backpack with the silver chain strapped across it and then his dragon's baseball cap. He very carefully set his bad leg on the ground as a slight pain shot up it and then dulled. He took a few cautionary steps before putting a normal weight on it. It was a little sore, but that was about it. Katara smiled when she saw that he wasn't in pain anymore. "Hey, you did a good job; it feels almost back to normal." He grinned ear to ear.

"That's good. My brother is in football, so he dislocates a bone from time to time."

"Oh, ouch." Aang said, cringing at the thought as Katara picked up her binder and began striding across the courtyard.

Aang quickly grabbed his black backpack and ran to catch up with her. He fell in step beside her as she explained what each building is and what core subjects are required sophomore year.

At Nations High School, each building sports a core subject, and the bungalows are foreign language and extracurricular. Aang froze in his steps as he gapped at a large, eccentric stone building that was in the front parking lot of the school. The dome of the building seemed to be composed of a thick glass and the walls of thick stone. In the front of the building, each of the four elements was engraved over a heavy metal door. "Whoa." He gasped, gapping at the building in awe.

Katara laughed at his reaction. "This is the arena for benders. It holds all of the training equipment needed and has some of the best masters in California. She turned to the still-gaping Aang. "Do you bend?" she asked him, curiosity written on her face.

"Um…" he said, snapped out of his trance by the question, rubbing the back of his neck."Well…"

"Katara!" a man Jumped out of a black tinted Mercedes that was in the parking lot. It was now the only car in the student lot.

Katara spun around at the familiar voice. "Oh, hi Sokka." She said.

"Sokka?" Aang asked, surprised.

Sokka ran up to Katara, concern etched in his face. "Katara, are you okay? I was just about to go and find you." He asked.

"Yeah, Sokka, I am fine." She shrugged. I was just showing Aang around. She gestured to Aang who was standing off to the side.

"Aang, this is my older brother, Sokka. Sokka, this is Aang. He is a new sophomore here and a new addition to band."

"Yeah. Actually, we have already met, this morning. Wow man, what happened to you?" he asked eyes wide as he took in Aang's disheveled appearance.

"Jet." Katara sighed, folding her arms across her chest. Just saying his name left a vile taste in her mouth, though she resisted the urge to spit. "Aang is going to hang with us today, is that alright?" she asked her brother with her matching blue eyes and tanned skin.

Sokka looked Aang over. "Yeah, no problem, actually, I think I have an extra shirt in the trunk, just give me a minute." Sokka strode across the blacktop with the white parking space lines and opened the trunk.

Katara turned back to Aang. "Do you need to make sure that this is okay with your parents?" she asked him.

"Oh, yeah." Aang gasped. I should probably call my uncle. He walked over to the side for some privacy as he took out his Android and unlocked it with his password. He hesitated for a moment before looking back at Katara. She glanced at him and smiled. He grinned back and then placed the black phone to his ear for a few minutes, moving his lips to mimic talking. But Aang never hit dial.

**My first chapter for my Modern Kataang finished! What do you all think? Let me know ;)**


	2. Chapter 2: The Boy in the Closet: Part 2

**Alright guys, I'm sorry it took me so long. Stuff came up, but now I am back for good! This is the second part of The Boy in the Closet. I hope you guys really enjoy it. Please review and tell me what you thinkJ. I'll see you at the bottom of this chapter where I have my always fun little note and my replies to my reviews in this chapter!**

**Disclaimer *I own NOTHING L***

**Chapter 2: the Boy in the Closet (part 2)**

Aang slowly strode back over to Katara, phone still pressed to his ear as he talked to the non-existent person on the other line. "Okay, thanks Geyatso." He made eye-contact with Katara and broke a smile. He laughed and his eyes became unfocused as Katara guessed that whoever was on the other line said something funny. Aang's eyes focused back on Katara and he winked at her. "Okay, Uncle G. Aright, see you tonight. Love you too, Bye." He pretended to hang up, and then he stuffed his phone back into the back pocket of his jeans.

"Is he alright with this?" Katara asked him, a glint of hopefulness in her eyes.

A smile grazed his lips. "Yeah, he says that it's cool." He replied.

"Yay!" she exclaimed as Sokka walked back across the barren student's parking lot with a red button down in hand.

"Here man." The junior said, handing Aang the shirt.

"Thank you." Aang replied slightly sheepishly, taking the shirt.

"Don't worry 'bout it, you can change shirts on the road. If we don't leave now, Toph'll bite our heads off for being late. Let's go." He replied, throwing a playful arm around his sister and steering her to the car. "And stop making goggle eyes as the new kid, Tara." He joked. " It's creepy, and besides,I haven't even gotten a chance to intimidate him yet." Sokka shot Aang a grin when he saw the young man's blush.

"C'mon Aang." Katara replied, quickly ducking out of her brother's arm to hide her own blush as she swung open the door and jumped into the car. Aang followed her into the backseat with the nice, dark gray seats.

"Whoa, nice ride." Aang chimed, sitting next to Katara. The back of the car was more of a two-seater couch, and he blushed slightly when her elbow brushed his.

"Thanks." Sokka said, as he got back into his four wheel drive and threw and arm around the platinum-haired beauty that Aang recognized as Yue, and began driving with his left hand.

"Hey Aang." Yue greeted to him.

"Hello, Yue." Aang replied politely, leaning forward in his seat to take her hand and gently kiss it.

"How was your first day at NHS?" she asked, adjusting the sun visor mirror to look at him as Aang sat back against the seat. The slight movement made his unbuttoned plaid shirt open up to expose slightly tanned abs and a fully defined chest. Katara saw Yue's eyes visually widened as they fell on his body. Yue's eyes meet Katara's also widened eyes. "Wow." She mouthed at her.

"I know." Katara mouthed back.

"Poor dude got thrown into The Closet by none other than Jet himself." Sokka said, his teeth clenching when he said Jet. "Aang, go ahead and try on the shirt."

Yue gasped. "Jet? As in Kat-?"

"Yes." Katara intervened quickly as the Mercedes stopped at a red light outside of the school. Aang shed his Jacket and shirt as it fell off his shoulders, exposing the rest of his tattoos once again.

"Whoa." Yue gasped eyes even more wide. The light once again turned green.

"What?" Aang asked, looking out the window, and thinking that someone's car nearly hit them.

"Oh…nothing."Yue blushed and flipped up the visor so he wouldn't catch her embarrassed blush through the mirror.

Sokka looked into his rear-view mirror to see what was going on in the back of his car. "Whoa, man." Sokka gasped. "You are in really good shape!" he exclaimed.

"Whoa Sokka… are you checking him out? Yue, it seems to me that you've got some competition." Katara teased. "Eyes on the road or you'll get us into a wreck."

"_Another_ wreck." Yue chimed in.

"I knew we shouldn't have let you drive, nothing good ever happens when you drive." Katara continued to joke from the backseat.

Sokka blushed at how he must be sounding, and how freaked out Aang must feel, but instantly felt relieved when Aang began to laugh, pulling the wine-red shirt over his frame. "You guys are too funny." He said. He turned in his seat to address Katara, fixing the black buttons on his shirt as he did so. "Is he really that bad of a driver?" he asked incredulously.

"Well," She replied, turning for a moment to look out the window. She turned back to meet Aang's gaze with a triumphant smile. "Considering that he just missed the exit to Toph's house…"

"Yes." both Yue and Katara said in unison.

"I did not!" Sokka retaliated. "Her house off of the next exit! I don't need input from the backseat driver."

"Actually, Hun…I think she's right." Yue chimed in.

"Traitor! Whose side are you on?" cried Sokka, shooting a glare at his girlfriend.

"Aw, hunny, don't be like that." Yue soothed, placing a hand on Sokka's knee and rubbing it in small circles. "I'll tell you what; I will check the address on my phone, okay?"

Sokka sighed, defeated, and gave her the address. Yue plugged it into her phone and waited for the directions. Those few moments that it took, Sokka held his breath as the two in the backseat had to clamp their hands over their mouths to keep themselves from laughing at how ridiculous the whole thing was.

Yue's phone beeped, and Yue read the directions. Aang and Katara watched in the rearview mirrors as she grimaced and looked back up at Sokka. "I'm sorry babe. Katara was right."

"Damn 'Tara. Why are you always right?" Sokka mumbled between his lips, honking the horn out of slight frustration as he realized that he had to swap lanes to make a U turn. He looked up into the mirror to catch his sister's stare and then flashed her a smile. His smile grew wider when he saw that the person in front of them was giving off a very colorful hand signal, thinking that Sokka's horn was honked at them. "Aw, look guys, we're number one!"Everyone looked out of the window and began laughing as the light turned red and the woman that was in the other car speed off. "Sorry ma'am!"

Sokka made the U turn. Because Sokka was laughing so hard, the turn was not a very slow-or graceful turn and caused Aang to crash into Katara.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so, so sorry!" he cried out, all humor gone from his face.

Katara took one look at his face and began to laugh, and then laugh harder when she noticed something else. "Don't worry about it; you didn't hurt me at all. B-but fix your shirt!" she could barely get the last sentence out as she watched Aang check his shirt and see that it was two buttons off

"Aw, man! How embarrassing." He laughed as he unbuttoned and fixed his shirt.

"Hey man, can I ask you something?" Sokka asked as he turned down a street this time on the right exit.

"Sure Sokka, what's up?" Aang asked as he checked his shirt to make sure the buttons were on right this time.

"Were did you get those tattoos at? They are freaking awesome!" Sokka exclaimed.

"Um…" Aang mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck. He knew that this question would come up eventually.

Katara once again came to his rescue, sensing his unease. "Um…Sokka? Maybe you should focused more on the road again…considering that you missed Toph's driveway.

"Damnit Katara! Again, really?" Sokka cried as he made a U turn once again on a street and drove up to Toph's driveway which was a very long, dirt road that lead to iron gates. Sokka drove up to these gates and stuck his head out the window to the guard at the gate. The guard took one look at him and rolled his eyes, opening the gate.

"Thanks!" Sokka called to him as he drove by. "He doesn't like me…never has. But I don't really know why."

_Aw, man. Why does Toph like him so much? He's so obnoxious, annoying, and loud…oh. Wait, so can she be at times. But, he has girlfriend, doesn't he? Gah! Why do I even care? _Someone else drove up to the gate. A real-estate agent. "No thank you, the BeiFongs most certainly do not want to sell their house." The female driver looked most disappointed as he pointed her out. "They don't pay me enough for this job." He mumbled under his breath.

Sokka drove up onto the long dirt road and parked the car."Alright everyone, out!" Everyone exited the car and turned towards the house. Aang blinked up in surprise. It was a mansion with elaborate stone architecture and the roof was carves with strands of gold. "Pretty nice house, huh?" Sokka asked.

"Um… yeah. It's pretty nice." Aang replied as Sokka clapped him on the back then walked up the gray stone steps to the large, double front doors and rang the bell. A few moments later, a stout girl swung opened the door. For the split moment Aang watched her stand there, his eyes widened and his jaw dropped. The girl was porcelain-skinned and decked in green cargo pants, a jet-black tank top that was hugged her curves, and black lace-up combat boots with a slightly feminine heel. Her long dark hair contrasted greatly with her emerald-green eyes was pulled back into a low bun at the base of her head with a bleached-blonde streak that trailed the length of her hair and ended at her bangs half-cover one of her eyeliner-enhanced eyes. She was thin, but not too thin to look unhealthy and fell about eight inches shorter than Sokka.

"Sokka!" she cried, throwing her arms around his neck as he picked her up off to the ground in a bear hug. "I have missed you so, so much!" she exclaimed as Sokka gave her a friendly peck on the cheek. A light blush highlighted her fair skin and made her look even more stunning.

No, there was no doubt about it, she was beautiful. Aang suddenly found it very hard to swallow. It was almost the same as when he had first talked to Katara, and he found it card to look away from the fair-skinned beauty.

Katara noticed where Aang's attention was and she couldn't help but want his attention back on her. Spirits, did she want this. She took an involuntary step towards him and tripped over the top step. She stumbled forward and Aang's attention finally found its way back to her just in time to catch her as she fell against his shoulder.

"Whoa." He righted her back on her feet, one hand around her waist and his other hand resting on her shoulder. "Are you alright?" he held her close to his body, and she could feel the heat radiating off of him as the air began to chill and the icy winds blew harder.

"Um…yeah. Thank you." She replied slightly numb. He didn't move his left hand from her waist as he pulled off his leather jacket with his other hand and threw it over her shoulders, pulling the collar up to her neck. "What are you…?"

"I don't want you to catch a cold." He winked at her. It was such a sudden and bold move for knowing someone for so shortly. Katara gasped as he winked at her, and steam escaped her lips. "You see?" Aang asked, pointing at the tendrils of steam that was disappearing and winked once again at Katara's startled expression. "That means its cold."

"KATARA!"

"Ah!" Katara cried. The short, pale girl with the streaked hair had run up and hugged Katara from behind playfully, with her arms around her waist. "Toph! You scared the hell out of me!" Katara laughed.

Aang watched as Katara laughed at her energetic friend. She absolutely glowed with the rain falling around her. Her large doe eyes seemed to open in slow motion as she looked back up at Aang and winked back at him. His heart fluttered, and it was all he could do to not let his jaw drop. He got a slight feeling that he had never gotten before. Spirits, did he… _like _Katara? His hands began to shake at the thought. Oh, yes, yes he did. There was no mistaking it; he liked this girl who was standing in front of him. This was bad. So, so bad, but he did not feel guilty at all.

"Whoa! Who's the inked kid? Cool tattoos!" the girl noted as she walked up to Aang. His hand immediately ran through his hair, pulling his bangs down low and combing it with his fingers. "Hey." She said, placing her hand on his forearm to detach his hand from his hair. "It's okay." She locked eyes with him, green with silver. "Katara shot me a text that said you would be hanging out with us. You are with us now. We don't judge if your past was juvenile or not. I'm Toph Beifong, by the way." She shot him a crooked grin and held out her hand.

"Aang, Aang Nomad. And I'm not a delinquent." He replied with a laugh. He took her outstretched hand and brought it towards his lips. "Pleasure to meet you, Miss BeiFong."

"Just shake it; I'm not into that type of formality." Toph said.

"Okay then, nice to meet you, Toph." He said with a cocky grin.

"Nice black eye." She said back with the same cocky grin. "Alright, everyone! Car is out by the garage, who is ready to go crash a mall?"

"Let's do this!" Sokka yelled, pumping his fist into the air. Toph lead the way to the stone garage that was placed on the left side of the house. The garage door was already raised to reveal a double-wide black stretch limo. They all followed Toph into the backseat.

In the inside of the limo, it was amazing! There were no seats, but a couch that went all the way around the perimeter of the car. There was a sunroof on the top that was tinted dark, and there were neon rainbow-style lights in a ring over the seats. There were stereo speakers plugged into the hood with I'm Glad You Came by The Wanted blasting. It looked almost like a mini club with the couch only separated by a mini fridge. A flat screen TV was mounted on the wall that separated the driver from the riders and a small door was built by it in case the driver needed to notify everyone of something.

"Wow." Aang said, taking a seat once again next to Katara.

"I know, right?" Sokka replied, a large grin on his face.

* * *

"O-kay, what are we going to do first?" Toph asked throwing an arm across one of Katara's shoulders as they entered the large, two-story mall.

"Hmm…" Yue thought out loud. "What about the arcade?"

"Alright, cool. Sokka needs to beat me at those shooting games anyway." Toph replied, smirking devilishly at the bewildered Sokka.

"Which ones?" Aang asked.

"All of them." Toph replied and made Sokka's jaw drop and Aang began to laugh.

"Oh, Toph, it's on!

* * *

The arcade was two-stories tall, with black painted walls and strobe lights everywhere. There was music blaring over the loud games. Toph pulled Sokka over to one of the multiple shooting games and the rest of the group followed in tow as Toph pulled out an old game card from her black wallet and swiped it. After pressing a few buttons, Sokka and Toph both grabbed a gun.

"And in 3…2…1." Toph chanted as a huge smirk spread across her face.

"DIE ZOMBIES!" both Toph and Sokka yelled, drawing the attention of a few passersby.

Right off the bat, you could tell who was going to win. Sokka's stance and the way he pointed his gun was off. It was sloppy where as Toph's stance was strong, with her heels together, shoulder to the screen, and the gun head on with arms fully extended, hitting the target every time. Aang had to clap his hand over his mouth as he watched Sokka hop around. Within a minute, the game yelled "Game over, Player 1 wins!" Aang saw the death toll of the zombies on each player's side, with Toph at 124 Zombies, and Sokka at 32.

"Rematch! I was just warming up!"Sokka yelled.

Toph sighed. "Alright, Sokka. Your call." She swiped her card again.

"This is going to take awhile." Katara murmured to Aang.

Aang looked around for a moment. "Do you dance?" Aang asked suddenly.

Katara was startled at the sudden question. "Yeah, actually. I do a little bit."

"Do you think you ate good enough to beat me?" he asked, pointing at a dance game where you have to step on the correct arrows at the right time while performing tricks.

"Oh, you are so on." Katara said as they left the group and made their way to the small metal stage.

* * *

Katara and Aang both pulled out their cards and swiped them. Aang as player 1 got to pick the songs and difficulty.

"Hmmm, chose a song Katara." Aang said "I'll win anyway."

"In your dreams!" Katara chided "Hit me with your best shot."

"Okay." Aang hit Katara's not-so-nonchalant song choice by Pat Benatar. "But we will rock you." Aang replied, hitting his song choice.

"Ha! You and what army?" Katara asked laughing.

"Me, my feet, and I." Aang replied. "I'll tell you what, if there ends up being a tie, then we will do we are the champions by Queen and we will see who the true champions are."

"Okay, it's on. And may the best dancer win." Katara said.

"Thanks, I will." Aang replied back as Katara laughed again. "What difficulty? I'll match you."

"Expert." Katara replied.

"Wow, you really are sure of yourself, aren't you?" Aang replied.

"Yep." Katara replied back.

"Okay then, hotshot. 3...2...1."

_"Well, you're a real tough cookie with a long history." _The song began and the movement's came fast in blurs of feet. Then, the tricks came almost instantly. Both dancers grabbed the railing behind them, pulled themselves up, and then jumped off; landing in a handstand on the next beat, jumping back on their feet to the middle. They then swapped stages so Katara was on Aang's side and Aang was on Katara's. The fluent movements attracted a few passersby and they stayed to watch.

_"Hit me with your best shot, fire awayyyy." _ The first song ended and there was a pause.

"Player 1 wins round 1!" Aang smirked at Katara as she smirked back.

"Hey, where's Aang and Katara?" Sokka asked after the fourth run of the same game against Toph…to which he lost to each time. Yue pointed to the miniature stage in which many people were crowded around. The gang walked over to the stage as another trick came up. _"we will, we will rock you!"_Aang grabbed Katara's hand and pulled her onto his side of the stage. A flurry of arrows came and Aang and Katara danced in sync on the metal platforms as "we will rock you" finished.

"Player 2 wins round 2!"

"Yea 'Tara! Rock on!" Sokka yelled.

"Best two outta three." Aang laughed with a wink.

"You're so on." Katara said, shrugging out of her leather jacket and tossing it towards Sokka.

"Is that a challenge?" Aang asked, taking his place in the center of his stage.

"Yep." Katara replied back, smirking.

"Okay then. It's on."

_"I've paid my dues, time after time."_

"You know, they are both really good." Sokka said.

"Yeah, they are." Yue replied.

"I sense a couple in the future." Toph said, waving her hands in a futuristic, gypsy-like way as if she was looking into a Chrystal ball.

"Ha-ha, Katara doesn't fall for people that fast and you know it Toph."

"Jet." Toph reminded him. "She didn't want Aang to know, and you can tell that when he's around her heart races a mile a minute."

"Well…you can." Sokka said, smirking at his friend.

"The beauty of being an Earthbender." Toph shrugged.

Sokka laughed as he threw a careless arm across her shoulders.

"But…" Toph said, all playfulness gone from her face and instead replaced by lines of confusion. "He's hiding something. I can feel it. And I'm afraid that whatever it is will end up hurting Katara. Sokka," she said, turning around towards him. "I need you to promise me that you will keep an eye out. I won't be here and I need you to keep sharp eyes." She said seriously.

"Wait, won't be here? Toph, are you leaving?"

"Yes."

"Where are you going?"

"We are the champions, of the wo-"

Toph, eyes shining with unshed tears, opened her mouth to speak.

The lights then went out. Everyone was still as confusion and disappointment echoed through the crowd. Aang and Katara straightened up on the metal stage. A loud voice echoed through the near-silent room. "Come out, or I'll shoot again, Avatar." A voice boomed.

"Avatar?" some confused whispers echoed through the crowd.

_Oh, God._ Aang watched closely as the saw the shadow of the man grab something out of his belt. A gun. _He wasn't joking._ Aang grabbed Katara's wrist and pulled her to his chest. Aang pushed her down on top of the platform and he covered her body with his own. The shot of a pistol rang clear through the room. The rest of the people in the arcade unanimously hit the floor as the bullet hit the large screen and glass s and sparks showered on top of Aang. He pulled his jacket out and over Katara to cover them both. The fire sparks illuminated the room for a moment as Aang looked up and saw an arcade game that was near enough to conceal both him and Katara. Another shot rang through the building and lodged itself into the bottom of the screen. There was a loud screech of metal. _It's going to crash. _Aang roiled off of the platform, angling his shoulder so it took the blow when they hit the floor. The blow caused them to roll a few more times until Aang felt the cool metal of an arcade game pressed against his back. Aang looked up to see the large screen crash on top of the platform. He shifted, covering her body once again with his body pressed against hers, but his forearms supporting his weight. More sparks showered and shards of metal and glass flew everywhere. It seemed that it took forever for the crash to end and the silent room was almost just as loud as the crash. Very slowly, Aang raised himself to look at Katara. Her eyes fluttered open to meet his. "Are you okay?" Aang whispered, brushing the dark hair that was strewn across her face.

"Yeah…I think so." She whispered as he tucked the strands behind her hair.

Aang looked around and saw an arcade game that would give them enough cover to see what was going on. "C'mon, follow me. We need to get out of here." Aang whispered to her. She nodded and Aang helped her into a sitting position.

"Okay." She whispered back.

"Watch out for glass." Aang warned as they crawled across the floor to the arcade game. Aang wrapped an arm across Katara's shoulders, pulling her to be completely concealed. Aang peered over the corner at the man with the gun.

"I know that he's here! I saw him walk in! Avatar, if you don't come out now, I will burn this place down. The death of these people will reside on your shoulders." The man dropped the gun and his fists were suddenly on fire. The fire ignited the man's features. He was tall and thin, straight black hair framed his face that fell to his chin. He had enhancing gold eyes with only one flaw, a large scar that covered his left eye to his cheekbone. The scar stretched across his face and disappeared behind his hair. He was undoubtedly handsome, but the way he held his stance left a confidence that may as well have the words "I'm full of myself" written across his forehead.

Katara looked over Aang's shoulder, and then he felt her go absolutely rigid. "Firebender," she choked out. Aang looked at her and saw that she had gone as white as a sheet. She was seriously afraid of this man.

"I have to go do something." Aang whispered more to himself than to Katara.

"No!" Katara hissed, clutching Aang's shoulder and pulling him back down from his halfway-standing position. "He's a Firebender Aang, he's dangerous. The look in Katara's eyes told him something. She was deathly afraid of Firebenders and she feared for his life.

"I know, but I can't let people die because of a Firebender." Aang replied back. "But stay here, if he is as dangerous as you say he is, and then we can't have you getting hurt. Promise me that you will stay put?" he asked

"I promise." Katara whispered back. "Aang?"

"Yes?" he whispered.

Katara wrapped her arms around his neck and nuzzled her nose against the crook of his collarbone. "Be careful." She whispered in his ear.

Aang had enough sense to enjoy what was happening rather than question it, so he returned her hug. They pulled away and he gave her a solid nod, slowly standing up.

"Okay Avatar, you had your chance!" the Firebender roared, reeling his fist back to throw fire at the wall.

"Looking for me?" Aang asked. He stood just off to the side and in front of the arcade game Katara was hidden behind. Aang was still incased in shadow from Zuko's perspective, but Katara on the other hand, saw him clearly. He stood his ground strong, head held up high, shoulders squared and fists against his sides.

"Finally. Come out of the shadow, Avatar." The Firebender replied.

"Not until you tell me who you are." Aang said his voice powerful and sure.

The Firebender let out a few raspy chuckles of laughter. "I am Zuko, Mayor Ozai's son."

"Should that scare me?" Aang asked.

Zuko growled through his teeth. "Yes." He shot out his fist and fire flew towards Aang. Aang had expected this and easily steeped off to the side and it crashed into the wall ten yards behind him. Aang followed the fire with his eyes for a moment and then looked back at the Firebender with the smoking fist.

"Was that it?" Aang asked slowly after a few moments of silence.

Zuko yelled out of frustration and bolted to Aang. Aang pushed his right foot forward into a strong, unmovable stance as Zuko sprinted the few feet to Aang. Zuko crashed right into Aang, forcing Aang to slam his back against the burning wall. Aang shrieked as the orange flames began to lick its way across the shirt's fabric, tendrils of smoke rising from the red material. Aang growled under his breath. _I will have to use bending. _He surged his arms forward, flicking his wrists out so his palms faced the firebender's chest. Zuko cried out in surprise as the wind whipped him back a few feet. Aang pushed himself off the wall, ignoring the stench of burning flesh that radiated off of him.

"Everyone outside!" Aang yelled, his voice ringing through the arcade. Aang struggled to dodge the fire that was being thrown from Zuko's fists. He couldn't risk the gang to see him bend, so instead he kicked out his leg and his heel connected with Zuko's jaw. Zuko lost his footing from the blow, falling facedown onto the floor. _There we go. _Aang thought. That bought everyone time to escape. Aang grabbed Zuko by the shoulder, yanking him up and pushing him against the side of the arcade.

Aang spoke harshly and quickly. "How did you know where to find me?"

Zuko smirked "I do my homework."

"Really schoolboy? 'Cause you seem to stray a long way from home." Aang grunted as he griped Zuko's shoulder tighter and threw him out the door.

"Can't take the heat, can you?" Zuko sneered, fists aflame once again.

"Okay, that was just bad." Aang murmured.

Zuko yelled, swinging his left arm. Aang caught it by his wrist and tightened his grip so he couldn't move. Zuko grunted in disappointment that his attack didn't meet its mark, and swung his right fist, which Aang saw coming and caught it. With a swift moment, Aang shot his knee up, smirking when his attack hit its spot. Zuko moaned, doubling over in pain and clutching his stomach. Very slowly, Zuko rolled back up straight, a newfound fire blazing in his eyes. He reached into the waistband of his pants and pulled out a silver pistol.

_I thought he already dropped that? _Aang thought, confused.

"A good huntsman always carries a backup." Zuko replied, answering Aang's unspoken question. He pointed the gun's short barrel in the center of Aang's chest.

"Aang!" A voice rang out, echoing through threw hall as Zuko fired the pistol. The voice of Katara startled Zuko and the shot missed its target as it traveled off course and grazed the top of Aang's shoulder, lodging itself in his skin.

Aang screamed, watching his own blood paint the white tiles of the mall's floor. He clasped his shoulder with his left hand, trying to stunt the blood flow in his shoulder. He turned his head to see Toph, Sokka, Yue, and Katara all flanked by three men and one woman in matching clothes. A black t-shirt and black pants. The female that had a hold on Sokka however, had her shirt cropped to show off the thin waist and stomach. They wore multiple studded belts crooked and hanging off her hips.

"Who are they?" Zuko asked.

"Apparently they are in alliance with the Avatar." The female said in a slow, emotionless tone.

"There must be a mistake." Yue said, struggling to break free of the man who tucked their arms behind her back.

"Oh really?" Zuko asked, directing his question to Katara. "Because I saw you walk in with him!" he roared.

"I don't know who he is." Katara replied icily, locking eyes with the Firebender.

Zuko smirked. "So he really didn't tell you?"

"Who?" Toph piped up.

Zuko narrowed his eyes at the Water bender and then marched over to the boy on his knees nursing his shoulder. He grabbed Aang by the back of his collar and pulled him up. He dragged the sophomore to face Katara, dropping him at her feet. Zuko grabbed a fistful of Aang's hair and pulled his head up too look up at Katara. Zuko swiped back the hair on Aang's forehead, reveling his sky blue tattoo.

"Stop!" Katara shrieked, struggling from her abductor.

"Do you see this? These are Air Nomad markings! How often do you see an Airbender walking around on the streets?"

Katara glared holes into the firebender's forehead.

"Stupid girl, you didn't even know that you were hanging around a cold-blooded killer!" he threw Aang back down onto the white tiles. "Better choose your friends better."

"I never k-killed anyone." Aang spat at Zuko.

Zuko smirked. "Not yet." He strode over to Aang slowly, leaning down close enough so Aang could feel his hot breath on his face. "But that's what you're trained for…what you were designed to do."

Zuko pointed his pistol's barrel once again, this time at Aang's forehead. "And now I'm going to kill you, and this bullet will go right. Between. Your. Eyes." Zuko spoke each word tantalizingly slow.

"Stop!" Katara shrieked along with yells from everyone else. Aang watched as Zuko's eyes grew with delight. Zuko hadn't planned on killing Aang in the first place, just trying to find his weakness. It worked.

"Don't touch her." Aang growled at him between his clenched teeth. This was going to get real bad really fast. _My knife! Where is my knife? _Aang reached into the front pocket of his jeans, searching for his pocketknife. The tips of his fingers brushed against a cold metal. _Ah! There it is!_

"Wouldn't dream of it, Avatar." Zuko smirked. That was a lie.

"No!" Aang yelled, yanking his knife from his pocket and leaping up. Zuko spun around and shot the gun, turning afterward to face Aang again. Aang dug the metal blade of his pocketknife into Zuko's cheek, dragging it across the length of his face.

Zuko screamed and Aang took that chance to trip him. In one strong motion, he stabbed his knife into Zuko's leg.

Aang spun around to face his new friends. Katara was staring at him with large eyes, a hand clamped to her side. Her breathing was labored.

"Anybody else?" Aang yelled at Zuko's four henchmen. He knelt down and picked up the pistol Zuko dropped when Aang attacked him. He opened the latch to see it there was still another bullet in the barrel. There was. He pointed the gun at Katara's abductor. "Release her or I shoot." Aang threatened. The man's hands were off all at once, including the other three's. Katara's face didn't change.

"Leave." Aang demanded at Zuko and the four henchmen. He swiped his hand down, retrieving his knife from Zuko's leg. The henchmen grabbed Zuko and dragged him out of the mall.

Aang was breathing hard with all eyes on him. Aang's eyes however were on Katara. She hadn't moved since she was released. "Katara?" Aang asked quietly. He took a step towards her, hands up in surrender, sending his gun and knife clattering onto the floor. When she didn't move, Aang braved a few steps until he was a foot from her. "Katara?" Aang asked again. She made a raspy noise and unclamped her hand from her side. Aang saw the effect of the pistol immediately. A large bullet wound between her ribs. She raised her hand to her eyes, face becoming paler by the second. Aang has seen that look before. She swayed slightly on the balls of her feet. "No Katara." Aang murmured softly. "It's alright. Sh." He pushed some strands of hair from her clammy face, and then dropped his arm to steady her at the waist. Another strangled gasp came from between her lips. Aang placed his other hand against the side of her face. "Katara, stay with me."

As soon as those words escaped his lips, Katara collapsed. Aang held her close as he laied her on his lap. The strangled sounds were becoming more frantic. Aang realized that that was exactly what they were. She couldn't breathe. "Sokka!" Aang yelled. "Sokka, she's not breathing."

Sokka jumped into action immediately, running to Katara's side and taking her face in his hands. "Yue, call an ambulance!" he called over his shoulder.

Yue shot him a thumb up. "Already on it." she called back, turning to Toph who had her cell pressed against her ear and waiting impatiently for someone to pick up.

Aang looked back down at Katara, weakly writhing in his arms as Sokka tried to gain her attention. "Katara, I'm here. Look at me, sis."

Aang felt sick to his stomach as he looked around the hall. Blood was splattered everywhere, staining the white tiles and tan walls. Then his eyes fell onto the crowd of mall shoppers that had stood and watched the whole scene unfold. Oh, yes. He felt very sick. He looked back down at Katara's face, draining of life.

_Spirits, what did I do?_

**A cliffhanger already in chapter 2? Yes there is! I will start posting updates on my stories about my blog on , if you guys decide you want to see a preview of the next chapter. I'm going to put up a preview over the next couple days and I also have some pretty random stuff on there if you are into that. By the way, no, Toph is not blind-well, not yet anyway. *laughs evily***

**I would like to thank all of my reviewers over my last chapter! Here are my replies! **

**guitar_goddess16: Thank you for being my first review. I really appreciated your enthusiasm! You know what's funny is that I was looking it over and I was trying not to kick myself for how many typos I made.**

**RandomPow3r: Thank you! The story has been continued!**

**Ashley Barbosa: I'm sorry that it wasn't soon, but I did update! J**

**Brandon: Well, I hope that you loved this one just as much as I loved typing it.**

**RonAndKim: I wish that I would've updated sooner, but my updates should be a lot closer now.**

**Crystal Ash: …I updated…please don't kill me (yet.) Don't you want to see what happens next?**

**EmmiBrook: A tribute to all of the High School bands out there! **


	3. The Boy in the Closet: Part 3

**Alright, so I'm back with Chapter One Part 3 (finally) and, its summer! So I am free to type and update without any school interruptions! :D Sorry about the cliffhanger, but I do many of them, so be prepared. Sorry this took so long, I have to get a new battery for my laptop, but 'till then; ONWARD WITH THE FINAL PART OF CHAPTER 1!**

***disclaimer: Don't own A:tLA… I know, I'm lame XD***

Chapter 1 part 3 (Final Part): The Boy in the Closet

Yue was standing close to Toph as the stout girl talked rapidly on the phone a few feet away from Katara, her head resting in Aang's lap as Sokka tried to get his sister's attention.

"They won't come fast enough. We have to stop the blood flow now." Aang growled. Sokka clamped his hands to her side. "She's still not breathing." He hissed. Her face was draining of color. _This is it_, Aang realized. He'd have to show his new friends sooner or later. He filled his lungs with air. Sokka's eyes widened as Aang gently pulled Katara's lips apart. Trying to keep his composure, he pressed his lips to hers. He locked his mouth around her lips, and forced the air down her throat, little bit by little bit.

"Toph, make sure that there are two ambulances!" Sokka yelled. Toph nodded to show that she understood.

"Who else is hurt?" Aang asked, panicked. He was able to pull himself away to Katara long enough to check her pulse.

"You are, Aang. You've been shot too." Sokka said seriously.

"I'll be fine, Katara is more important right now." Aang said, locking eyes with the junior.

There was just Toph's frantic talking as Aang leaned down and forced air into Katara's lungs again. "Okay, she's breathing again."

"So…it's true. You're an Airbender." Sokka asked almost too quietly.

Aang nodded without looking at the older boy.

"And…you're the Avatar?" Sokka said slowly.

"Um… there is a possibility that I may be." Aang mumbled, still not looking up.

"Aang, can I ask you something? If you're the Avatar, then your job is to protect people, right?"

"Of course."

"How can you possibly be able to take care of other people- the whole world…if you can't even take care of yourself?" Toph asked walking up to the two kneeling boys.

Aang was silent.

"Point taken." Toph shrugged. "How is she?" she asked quietly. Yue kneeled by Aang's side next to his injured shoulder. She tentatively placed her hands over the wound, forcing the blood to remain in his body.

"Yue." Aang murmured.

"Hey-we're in this together." Yue whispered. The rest of the group nodded.

"She'll be fine if the ambulance comes quick. I can't tell where the bullet hit. She lost too much blood to tell. Toph, can you feel anything?" Sokka asked.

Toph placed her hand against the tiles under her, and closed her eyes, holding a finger to her lips for silence.

It seemed like everyone held their breath, save Katara's shallow gulps of air.

Very slowly, Toph's eyes opened. "One cracked rib, one broken rib. I think the bullet pierced her lung."

Aang couldn't stop himself, brushing the hair from her forehead. He had known this amazing girl for only a couple hours, and he had already hurt her. He was broke from his thoughts when she whimpered. Aang quickly withdrew his hand._ I'm so sorry. _He turned his head to see tears in Sokka's eyes. Very slowly, he looked behind him. There, at the opposite end of the hallway, a large group of mall shoppers were staring at the scene that lay before them. The wide-eyed, jaw-dropped people staring at the scene that had unfolded before them. Parents who covered their young children's eyes of the blood that was spread across the floor, splattered on the walls. Crimson red against pure white; what could never be unseen. He cringed away from the crowd. They waited in dead silence except for some far-off music from one of the nearby clothing stores.

_The sharp knife of a short life_

_Well, I've had just enough time_

_If I die young; Burry me in satin_

"They're here." Yue murmured almost silently.

Aang slowly moved out of Yue's hands, the scream of sirens coming louder in the distance. He pushed his arms under her, one under her legs, and one across her back, head resting on his chest. He lifted her off of the cold floor and took of jogging towards the exit. He kicked open the double door and jogged out to the mall's curb as the double-wide ambulance pulled up and the doors flew open to reveal two EMT's jumping out. The first one ran over to Aang and carefully handed over Katara in his arms. The second one ran over to Aang and laid a hand against Aang's good shoulder.

"You too, son." The man said. Coffee-colored eyes boring into his. Aang nodded numbly, eyes watching the other EMT laid Katara on a gurney. He turned toward the rest of the group who had followed them out.

"All of you go get cleaned up and meet us at the hospital."

Sokka nodded back to Aang as he, Yue and Toph all walked back quickly to Toph's limo. Aang turned back to the paramedic as he helped him into the double-wide ambulance and sat him on the gurney. The ambulance doors closed as the sirens once again began wailing just over Aang's head.

* * *

"And are you feeling any dizziness." The EMT asked Aang as he bandaged Aang's shoulder. "Lightheaded-ness?" Although the boy had been answering every one of his questions-much to the paramedic's relief, the boy had not taken his eyes off the same spot since they had entered the truck only minutes ago.

"No." Aang murmured back to the paramedic. The paramedic looked over and saw that Aang was staring at the girls on the other gurney's face. Her hair spiraled out over the gurney's side, her breath quick and shallow as one other paramedic worked over her. The paramedic smiled. Something about the way this boy looked at this woman reminded him of the way he could never stop staring at his wife.

"Hey son." The paramedic said, laying his hand on the boy's good shoulder and making him jump. The boy slowly met the intense sea green eyes of the Paramedic. "She will be okay." He said seriously.

As if on cue, a machine in the corner of the ambulance began to squeal. Aang's paramedic's eyes went wide as he left Aang and spun around to face Katara's gurney. Aang's eyes widened as his view was obscured by his own paramedic checking Katara's pulse. He quickly pulled out an oxygen mask and pushed it over her head, flicking the machine on.

The blaring of the sirens was silenced and the doors of the ambulance swung open. Aang watched in utter shock as Katara was rolled down the ramp to the cement and into the care of nurses waiting to pull her inside. Aang didn't stop staring until long after she disappeared out of sight.

Aang's paramedic kneeled down in front of Aang's stunned form. The paramedic took pity on Aang. Something about this boy was special. The paramedic's eyes traveled up to the blue tattoo on the boy's forehead. _That's what it is. _

"I'm going to personally take you to your room. Do you think that you can walk by yourself?" Aang numbly nodded, slowly meeting the paramedic's chocolate eyes. Very slowly, Aang began to stand, only to collapse back down when complete shock overtook him. Aang covered his face with his hands, dry sob after dry sob racketing through his body. The paramedic looked down sadly at Aang. "Hey son." He said, resting his hand on Aang's good shoulder. "She's going to be okay, it's going to be okay." He let the younger boy control himself for a few minutes, waving off a nurse running up to them with a wheelchair.

_"Oh my gosh. She is shot, she could die, and it's all my fault. Her parents, oh my god; her parents. Pull it together Aang."_

After a couple more minutes, Aang looked back up, surprised to see the paramedic still there in front of him.

"I'm going to help you up now, okay?" the paramedic looked to be in his early forties, and his eyes were kind and full of wisdom that reminded Aang of a younger version of his uncle whom he was living with. Aang nodded and the paramedic carefully grabbed Aang under the arm that was not injured and hosted him to his feet. "That's good, 'Atta boy. Are you feeling dizzy or nauseous?" Aang shook his head. "Okay, then we are going down the ramp, okay? Go slowly and hold onto me if you think that you are going to fall."

With some stumbling, Aang made it down the ramp to the cement. Once they got to the emergency room entrance, Aang's heart broke. Everywhere he looked, people were either sitting in chairs holding each other, or to anxious to sit and were pacing across the white tiles. There was a group in particular who were crowded around a man clutching a wooden cross so tightly his knuckles were white, lips moving in prayer as tears streamed down his withered face.

Frantic nurse pulled a gurney in front of him, and Aang instantly grabbed onto his paramedic, suddenly not able to stand. A young girl was lying down on the stretcher, white gauze tapped across her head, a white blanket stained red was wrapped around her, and what was left of her mangled arm was wrapped in a bag that was filling up red fast. A young couple, who Aang could only assume was the little girl's parents, arms clasped around each other and were following the girls gurney, a paramedic walking briskly after them.

The paramedic walked a little slower until he was sure Aang could walk normally again. At this point, Aang stopped paying attention to where he was being led. He was led into an emergency room and the paramedic helped him sit down. All adrenaline in Aang's body began to wear off and Aang felt the pain of the gun wound in his shoulder and it was making him nauseous. The paramedic noticed the woozy look on Aang's face and placed a trashcan in Aang's lap. "What's your name?" the paramedic asked. He had a certain accent that Aang couldn't pinpoint.

"Aang." Aang croaked. "And yours?" Aang leaned over the trashcan, swallowing the vile that was rising in his throat.

"Iroh." He replied. "You're the Avatar, aren't you?"

Oh that did it. Aang's stomach heaved and acid forced its was between Aang's lips until there was nothing left in his stomach. Iroh patiently waited, patting Aang's shoulder. "How did you know?" Aang coughed.

* * *

Sokka pushed open the double doors that lead to the entrance of the emergency wing with Toph and Yue trailing on his heels, ignoring all of the stares he got as he walked past the people in the waiting room. He stormed up to the receptionist's desk and slammed his large hand down on top of the counter, causing the counter to shake and the papers near his hand to fly away from him. "Where is my sister?" he demanded.

The receptionist did not seem at all startled by Sokka's demanding voice, but instead peered at him over her wire-rimmed glasses, then over at the girls who gave her apologetic stares and embarrassed blushes. She met Sokka's icy blue eyes once again. "What is her name?" she asked calmly.

"Katara Hail." Sokka replied shortly, his voice hard and cold.

Sokka and the girls held their breath as the receptionist turned back to her computer and typed on her keyboard, clicking her mouse a few times. "I'm sorry, but Katara Hail is currently in surgery right now. The doctor will find you as soon as the procedure has finished."

Toph saw a muscle clench in Sokka's tanned jaw and she began pushing him towards the hospital's café.

Yue shot the receptionist an apologetic smile and said a quick thank you before following Sokka and Toph to a high table. "I'll go get us drinks." She offered, and dashed off to stand in line before anyone could protest.

* * *

Iroh smiled sadly. "I have been waiting for you for a long time. I have news that you need to know." When Aang didn't reply, Iroh continued.

"Mayor Ozai is my brother. He is planning very terrible things. I'm sure you already know that he is the reason for the disappearing Airbenders."

"What?" Aang replied.

"He knows that the Avatar is an Airbender. He has been killing and capturing people from the Air Nomad tribes for a few years. He is afraid that you will ruin his plans.

"Plans for what?" Aang asked.

Iroh sighed. "This summer, his father Azulon is going to let Ozai take his place ruling over the Fire Nation cities. Ozai is going to use that power to finish off the Air Nomads and then attack the Water Tribe colonies."

"How do you know all of this?"

"Ozai is my brother." Iroh replied. "He and I were both generals. I was supposed to take over the Fire Nation Cities when my father stepped down. He did terrible things to my family, and I was deemed unfit to rule after losing my wife. You need to stop my brother from becoming President of the Fire Nation Cities or else bad things will happen, Aang." Iroh looked at his watch. "Doctors will be here soon to check your stitching." And with that, Iroh left.

* * *

Sokka, Toph, and Yue had long since stopped trying to make conversations and instead had settled to heads bent over untouched cups of coffee that had long since gone cold.

"Sokka?" a familiar, aged voice called from behind him. Relief flooded his face as he jumped off of this chair and turned to meet the older woman who stood before him.

Her skin was a little bit lighter than Sokka's, silvery-gray wisps of hair strayed from her messy bun across her forehead, large chunks of hair falling down her neck. She was quite short, but the way she held herself made her look like she could take on the world. Her blue eyes that were tradition in the Water Tribe cities matched Sokka's perfectly, and held so much wisdom. She was wearing a large blue overcoat, arms folded in a way that was protective.

"Gran-gran." Sokka choked, running up to help his grandmother sit down.

"Has the doctor come to tell you anything?" Gran-gran replied, sitting down in one of the chairs.

"No, we've been here for three hours." Yue said sadly. "Can I get you anything Kanna?"

"That's sweet of you Yue, but that's okay. I don't think that we will be here much longer."

"I can't believe that this happened, out of all people, why Katara?" Toph whispered.

"Well," Kanna said, readjusting her hands in her lap. "Destiny has a weird way of working things out, but there is no doubt in my mind that she will be okay. All we can do now is have faith that everything will work out. How is that other boy?"

"Aang? Well, we haven't heard anything about him either." Yue sighed, placing her head in her hands. "I hope he's okay too."

"He will be… I know it." Toph said. "His heart was beating strong until they left, his body didn't seem to be shocked by the bullet wound.

"There is something… different about him." Yue murmured.

"Yeah, what do you think he-?"

"Sokka Hail?" a voice echoed. Everyone's head snapped up to look at the doctor striding towards their table.

"Yes?" Sokka gasped, running up to meet him. "Katara, is my sister okay?"

"Well," the doctor said, readjusting his glassed on his narrow nose and peering at the clipboard in his left hand. "The surgery was successful; the bullet did not pierce any internal organs. It was successfully removed, but there are some problems."

"Like what?" Yue asked, walking up to them, escorting Kanna.

"The bullet shattered one rib pretty badly, and cracked another; it also tore through a muscle. She will not be able to do much for awhile; she just went through a blood transplant. You guys will need to help her with simple tasks, and she will be in a wheelchair for a good few weeks before she will be able to walk."

"That's fine; we will do whatever it takes." Sokka said seriously. "Yue, would you mind taking over for a few days to help me with her? You too Toph."

"Of course we will Snoozles." Toph said with a smile.

"Well, would you like to see her now? She's awake." The group nodded in agreement and followed the doctor down to the rooms.

* * *

"Aang?"

Aang jumped awake, shocked and drenched in sweat. A warm, steadying hand kept him planted to his sheets. "Geyatso?" Aang gasped.

"Yes son, it is me. The doctors let me in, how are you feeling? What happened?" Aang blinked away the last bit of sleep before reality punched him in the stomach.

"Oh my gosh, Katara!" Aang cried out, throwing off the blankets and jumping up on his feet. "Agh!" Aang cried out, falling back down into the sheets as pain spread like fire across his back and shoulder.

Geyatso sighed. "I knew it was dangerous to put you in this school. Your first day and you get shot. Who knew about you?" Geyatso's matching pair of gray, worried, aged eyes shined with unshed tears.

Aang sighed "Mayor Ozai's son."

"Zuko Sozin?" Geyatso asked, face slowly draining of color.

"When will we find out if it's true? If I'm actually the Avatar?"

Geyatso stared at the boy that has been like his own son with heartbreak in his eyes. "Aang, the doctors did a blood test when you were asleep.

"What! No!" Aang cried out, rolling up his sleeve to look at the gauze that was tapped in each arm.

"You're pulse was abnormal and so they drew blood, then they called me in."

"And?" Aang asked.

"You are the Avatar... but that's not all." Geyatso sat down beside Aang, placing his head in his hands.

"Uncle, what's wrong?" Aang asked, laying his hand on the older man's shoulder.

Geyatso sighed again and looked right in Aang's matching eyes. "I got a letter from Earth President Kuei in the Capitol… they did a tally of the survivors in the Air Cities. Aang, we are the last Airbenders left, and the survivors are disappearing one by one. If it's Ozai and Azulon behind it then we are in trouble. I called President Kuei the moment I found out you were the Avatar. As of now you are under the Di Lee Army's protection, but it won't last long. Aang, you are the only one who can stop this before Azulon has Ozai take over. This is why you survived."

**I warned you. **

**Replies:**

**Guitar-goddess16: Thank you! The fight scene probably took me the longest J**

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**EmilytheEnchantress: I'm glad that you like the drama, there will be much of it ;)**

**CharlieFibrosis: thank you J I'm trying to base it off of normal highschool events with a twist J**

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